Maui WordPress 101 Workshop - June 18, 2010

WordPress Basics

Getting Started with WordPress as your Website Publishing Tool

Jeff Bennett

www.DigitalSplashMedia.com

Friday, June 18, 2010

http://www.DigitalSplashMedia.com

http://www.DigitalSplashMedia.com

WordPress BasicsObjectives:

Learn how to set up a basic business website using Wordpress


Topics

Acvivation & Sign-up The DashboardThemesSettingsCreating PostsCreating PagesPages vs PostsEditing Posts & PagesCategories & TagsManaging CommentsSite Structure/OrganizationStatic Home PageLinksMedia LibraryWidgetsPolls & RatingsWordpress.orgInstalling Wordpress.orgPluginsUsersContact PagesCustom FieldsPage TemplateseCommerceBackupsSecurityUpdatingImporting


Agenda

Conceptual Overview

Guided Tour, Live Demo & Site Building Exercise


Agenda

Conceptual Overview



Every Business NEEDS a Website


But historically, to build a website, you

needed to know how to code


... or hire someone who did


But with the advent of free Internet

publishing tools like Wordpress


Geek-speaknot required!

You don’t have to know how to code


Though it started as a blogging platform,

Wordpress is now a very rich online

publishing tool used for building entire websites


For example...


So, why is this good news for you?


You can build this...

without knowing this


Create a website using only your browser for FREE

$0


You just use a simple text editor to create

and edit pages


The Basic Process

Sign-up/

Install

Choose theme

Adjust settings

Write a page Publish


The Basic Process

Sign-up/

Install

Choose theme

Adjust settings




The Basic Process

Sign-up/

Install

Choose theme

Adjust settings




The Basic Process

Sign-up/

Install

Choose theme

Adjust settings




The Basic Process

Sign-up/

Install

Choose theme

Adjust settings




The Basic Process

Sign-up/

Install

Choose theme

Adjust settings




If you’re familiar with Microsoft Word or another word processor,

you should be able to get the hang of Wordpress


Before we jump in...


FlavorsFriday, June 18, 2010

.com .org

vs.


WordPress is a software product made by a company called Automattic

makes


Automattic offers free blogs & websites at wordpress.com

Automattic:Provides free web hostingSets up WordPressHandles backupsHandles upgradesStops spam

This is the “.com” flavor.Limited themes, options and flexibility and no code hacking.


Web Host

Web servers display your

website to people who visit it

They pay a monthly fee to a web host, and install the free WordPress software on the

web host’s server

Many people want more options or control than WordPress.com offers.


Web HostWebsite owner responsibilities:Buy the web hostingSet up WordpressHandle backupsHandle upgradesStop spamUpload new themesUpload plugins

This is the “self-hosted” or “.org” flavor.Complete control but comes with extra responsibility

With greater control comes greater responsibilities


Which flavor is right for

you depends on your needs

and situation

.org .com


Both flavors are

very similar in how you use them

.com.org


We’ll focus on .com to

start

.com


Agenda

Conceptual Overview



Wordpress Guided

Tour

Wordpress Guided Tour


Let’s Build a Website

Change ThemeAdjust SettingsCreate New PostInsert MediaCreate PagesEdit Posts & PagesCreate CategoriesAdd WidgetsStatic Home PageExport to .org

Chateau Mauichateaumaui.wordpress.com

Website about wine made from Maui's vineyards. Information pages about Maui's vineyards, growing region, terroir, history, etc., Blog, Categories for posts: Wine Types


The Dashboard

Customize Layout

Expand/Collapse Menu


Themes

Search

Appearance

Browse

Preview

Activate

Options - not all themes created equal


Settings

GeneralWritingReadingDiscussion


Creating Posts

Title

Type or paste content

Insert imagesFormatting icons

Click for all icons

Publish options

Categories

Tags


Creating PagesSimilar layout as posts

Attributes instead of Categories and Tags


Posts vs Pages

Posts PagesTime-based content displayed in reverse chronological order - more “bloggy”

Pseudo-static pages used to create web pages for non-changing information like contact, about, events, products, services, etc. Not listed by date, and they don’t use categories and tags


Editing Posts & PagesSelect Edit under either Posts or Pages

Select item to edit


Categories & Tags

Categories - helpful for organizing your posts by topic

Tags like keywords


Custom Menus

UnapproveApproveSpam


Managing Comments

UnapproveApproveSpam


Site Structure

Organize your site’s pages according to your business needs

Order pages using the order attribute in the Pages section

Menu editor in Wordpress 3.0 will make this better and easier


Static Home Page

First create a page that will be your home page

Under Settings > Reading click on A static page in the Front page displays section & select the new home page for Front page and new blog page for posts page

Create another new page that will be for blog posts


Links

Optional if you want to have a set of links in your sidebar


Media Library

Upload and manage photos, video and other media


WidgetsContent for your sidebar & footer

Drag-n-drop widgets with your mouse

Find it under Appearance menu

Useful Widgets:Recent PostsArchivesCategoriesRSS

Some themes include extra widgets


Polls & Ratings

Ratings - people can rate posts

Polls - requires account with PollDaddy.com

Included with .com, need plugins for .org


Wordpress.com Upgrades

Your own domain name - $9.97/year

Custom CSS (extra flexibility for changing your theme) - $14.97/year

Applies to .com, not .org


Wordpress.orgMuch the same as .com as far as interface goes

Lots more themes

Lots more options via plugins

Tons of flexibility

You have to sign up with a web host

BlueHost.com - very affordable ($6.95/month), good options, easy Wordpress installation


Installing Wordpress.org

Pick a version

Pick a non-default username and a good password (and remember that password!)

Where to install it

Name can be changed later


PluginsThere’s a plugin for that!

Plugin menu item

Hundreds, maybe thousands of plugins available

Add functionality to your site

Add new plugins via Add New


Essential PluginsAkismet - stop spamWP Table Reloaded - easy tablesNextGen Gallery - nice photo galleryPHPMyAdmin - BackupsCformsII - Contact and other formsFeatured Content Slider - HeadSpace2 - SEOSEO Friendly Images - SEOSEO Smart Links - SEOYet Another Related Posts Plugin - SEOTiny MCE - more formatting options for posts and pagesSociable - social mediaGoogle Analytics -


Users

Add many other users with varying levels of permission

Available in .com & .org


Contact FormsShortcode:[contact-form

to="[email protected],dad@wordpr

ess.com,[email protected]"

show_subject="yes"

subject="Contact WordPress

Family"]

Contact Form Plugins:-Fast and Secure Contact Form-cforms


mailto:[email protected]








Custom FieldsPowerful feature in posts that provides ability to add extra information to posts

Requires a theme that supports it or extra coding

Don’t worry about it for now. Topic of a more advanced workshop.


Page Templates

Ability to create pages using different templates

Some themes have multiple templates defined. Many do not.

Addressed in more detail in a subsequent workshop


eCommerceLots of options:

Text links to 3rd party stores (cafepress)

PayPal buttons using PayPal as both shopping cart and payment gateway

3rd Party shopping cart buttons

Plugins

More detail in a subsequent workshop


BackupsVery Important!

Minimum backup of core Wordpress data using Tools > Export

Full Wordpress database backup using phpMyAdmin plugin

Service: Online Backup for Wordpresswordpress.backup-technology.com/


Security

Delete default admin username

Hackers are out there!

Choose good password

Keep up to date with latest version of Wordpress and Plugins

Security Scan Plugin


Upgrading

Back up first!Database and Files

Disable Plugins

Automatic Update


Importing

Import content from other Wordpress site, Blogger and more


Wordpress 3.0New in 3.0

Menu Manager

New default theme

Custom background & headers

Custom post types

and much, much more

www.mauiwordpress.com/?p=15


http://www.mauiwordpress.com/?p=15

http://www.mauiwordpress.com/?p=15

Analytics & Site Stats

Google Analytics

Webserver stats

.com stats in dashboard


Themes RevisitedAll themes are NOT created equal

Different themes - different options and customization

Free themes and premium ($) themes

Some Themes with good customization options:

Suffusion (free)Twenty Ten (free, Wordpress 3.0 for .org, available now in .com)Indy PremiumSimple IndyUnder the InfluenceArthemiaThesis ($)


Which flavor is right for

you?


WordPress 3.0http://wordpress.org/development/2010/06/

thelonious/


http://wordpress.org/development/2010/06/thelonious/




WordPress ResourcesDigitalSplashMedia.com

MauiWordPress.comWordPress.tv

codex.wordpress.orgTwitter.com/DigitalSplash

Twitter.com/MauiWordpress

Maui WordPress User Group???


WordPress 201A new WordPress workshop coming soon.

http://www.digitalsplashmedia.net/2010/06/customizing-wordpress-themes-maui-wordpress-201-workshop/







Technology

Maui WordPress 101 Workshop - June 18, 2010